In the published German patent application Ser. No. 2,928,117 are described pliers of the scissors type which comprise a pair of hinged-together members having a rear handle portion and a front shank portion, and a pair of hinged-together flat, elongated working jaws, each with a rearward extension beyond the hinge point. The pair of jaws is with one of the rearward extensions mounted on the outer side of one of the shank portions so as to be rotatable about an axis lying in the tool plane, so that the whole pair of jaws may be swung out of the tool plane.
For transferring the movement of the other shank portion to the other jaw, a driving rod is slidably mounted between these two members, passing through holes in the other jaw extension and in the other shank portion.
The purpose of the rotatable mounting of the pair of jaws is, however, not to enable the option between frontal and lateral introduction of the work piece, but to enable adjustment of the angle between the tool plane and the jaws.
A pair of jaws mounted on the outside of one of the shank portions embodies a structure which considerably protrudes beyond the outline of a conventional pair of pliers, i.e., occupies additional space. The jaws, particularly when swung out of the tool plane, cannot affect the work piece with as high a thrust as when the work piece is located between two shank members. High thrust is however needed on occasion, e.g., for crimping certain electrical connectors.
In a sales catalog entitled "Rema Press-Technik" of the German firm of Rema Lipprandt GmbH & Co KG, Bonn, are shown compression tongues of the vice type which have no shank members and in which the die members are mounted in a yoke member so as to be rotatable relative to the handles about an axis extending in the tool plane.
The tool enables application of a high thrust on the work piece, and the work piece may be introduced into the tool from any arbitrary lateral direction, but not frontally.